


Up There In The Sky

by ellasinanotherworld



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Canon Compliant, Character Death, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hogwarts, Love, Marauders, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Requited Love, relationships
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-15 01:40:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,450
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29428266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ellasinanotherworld/pseuds/ellasinanotherworld
Summary: Marauders era fanficLife hasn't always been easy for Aurora Sinclair, not when she had been told her entire life that she was a squib, not when her family clearly favors her younger brother over her, and not when she was flung into the magical world head-first without having ever experienced any of it before. But when she meets three mischief-ridden boys, her time at Hogwarts is sure to be one she will never forget.Note: I am trying to be canon-compliant, but there may be a few diversions here and there, so sorry about that!
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, Sirius Black/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 3





	1. Prologue: The Squib

My name is Aurora Sinclair, and today is my eleventh birthday. The other witches and wizards my age would wake up with butterflies in their stomachs, a mixture of excitement and nerves. They would be waiting anxiously by their windows for their Hogwarts letter to arrive. But the only thing my stomach feels like it is full of is hunger.

However, I am a squib. It has been a grave disgrace to my family, Purebloods, that their eldest child will not be the next minister of magic, and will probably end up working as a receptionist (the only muggle job my parents know of). My mother, Barbara Fawley, is a pureblood witch, part of one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight families, and my father Kenneth Sinclair is part of an American Pureblood family as well. 

I've shown next to no magical abilities so far in my life. When I was seven I was convinced I had knocked over the inkwell on my father's desk with magic, but my father was so, _so_ angry that I had ruined his paperwork, that accused me of spilling the black ink on purpose and used magic as an excuse. Because that was all it could be, an excuse. I, Aurora Sinclair, was not magical and was nothing but a squib.

After that, I convinced myself there was no possible way I could be a witch. The fear I felt when my father's grey eyes turned to raging storms, and his disappointment in me became inevitable. He was ashamed of me, I realized at that moment, that his Pureblood daughter was worse than a muggle-born.

So you can imagine our shock when our breakfast of waffles and cream was interrupted by a tawny owl tapping impatiently on our kitchen window.

"Well, let him in then" my mother, a tall brunette witch said, breaking the tension. I was fixed to my chair, I could hardly move from fear and curiosity.

I recognized the owl immediately as one of the Hogwarts owls, I had seen them come and go over the years as my father often did work for Dumbledore.

After about five minutes of impatient tapping, my younger brother Jesse stood up and let the owl in. Jesse is two years younger than me and is everything that I am not. His golden curls and tanned skin are completely the opposite of my limp brown hair and freckled-skin. The only way you would know we were related was we are both tall and have dark green eyes. Without these traits we would hardly be recognized as distant relatives, let alone siblings.

Jesse untied the envelope from the owl's foot and it gave a small hoot of annoyance before flying off into the cool summer air. He handed it to me before giving me a small smile and leaving the kitchen, sensing this was a moment that I should share with our parents alone. God, Jesse had always been so good at reading people it could be infuriating. For what seemed like hours, I sat frozen, unable to bring myself to open the letter. The envelope was sealed with the Hogwarts crest and my heart pounded loudly in my chest, a heart rate this high was sure to have some negative effect on my health but I didn't care. Eventually, I carefully opened it, careful not to tare anything, as this was possibly the most important thing I would ever receive in my life. I read the letter slowly, over and over again in disbelief.

Could this be some sick joke that the neighborhood children had pulled? Knowing how this would mean that I, in fact, was not a squib at all and was just unfortunately misdiagnosed after being a late bloomer? But no eleven-year-old kid was that good at forgery, and no eleven-year-old kid had an owl that looked identical to a Hogwarts one. I looked up for the first time, finally daring to meet my parents' astonished eyes.

"Mum, Dad." I finally said, a smile creeping on my face. "I'm going to Hogwarts."


	2. First Year: Novis Initiis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aurora meets the Marauders

If anyone ever tells you that wizards don't gossip, they are lying. In fact, wizards have a certain lust for spreading drama, and so my previously-thought squib-ness was no exception. Word had apparently got out that the Sinclair disgraced daughter would be starting her first year at Hogwarts in September 1971. As I walked out of the barrier to platform 9 and 3/4 with my parents and brother, a series of whispers followed wherever we went, followed by awkward aversions of eyes. At that moment I decided I would prove them all wrong. My parents, my classmates, and the other snobby purebloods families. I'd become the best goddam witch they have ever seen.

The other purebloods weren't all that bad, but I only recognized a few of their names. The Black family was the one I was most worried about, my parents had always told me never to mix with a Black, that they are one the purest form of evil. I planned to make my own judgment on them because, after all, was I not someone who would be judged too?

They were a group of adults and four children, two teenage girls and two younger boys, and were standing in a huddled group. The older two had permanent sneers plastered to their faces as we walked past the group.

"Look away Reg, that is squib scum." the older of the two girls remarked to the younger of the two boys.

"That's okay Bella, I'm only starting school next year. It is Sirius you should worry about," he replied with an air of coolness. It was surprising to hear a ten-year-old sound so grown-up. 

The other boy, Sirius, whom I assumed must also be starting his first year was looking giddy with excitement and mischief. He had fair skin and long dark hair that stopped about mid-neck, he had a defined facial structure and piercing blue eyes. They were an undeniably attractive family, and the Blacks held themselves in a superior manner, like royalty amongst peasants.

I kissed my parents goodbye and ruffled Jesse's hair.

"Don't get into too much trouble, okay?" I said to him as I stepped onto the train away from my family.

He chuckled because we both knew he was the angel child and I was the troubled one. the whistle blew and the glorious train began to move, as I stepped into an empty carriage at the far end of the train. I wanted to be as far away from peering eyes as possible, and settled down on the plush bench, and decided to let Forrest out of his cage. Forrest was the eagle-owl I had received for my birthday a few months ago and was gorgeous. He gave a toot of gratitude as I fed him a treat and began to relax.

The door of the carriage opened and two girls walked in, in deep conversation. I don't think they even realized I was there, and though I was tall I had the ability to take up very little room- an ability I had learned from years of pretending I didn't exist.

"Oh, sorry! I didn't realize this was occupied." the red-haired girl exclaimed when she realized she and the blonde weren't alone.

"Oh no that's okay, you can stay if you want," I replied warmly, trying to be friendly.

"Thank you, I'm Marlene McKinnon and this is Lily Evans." the blonde spoke.

"Aurora Sinclair," I replied and the two shared a surprised look. Oh _no,_ making friends would be impossible.

"I'm not a squib you know! I just developed a bit later that's all." I said defensively.

"A what? Sorry, I am muggle-born, I don't know a lot of wizard terminology," Lily spoke up. "we had just been talking about Marlene's summer in Iceland and she had mentioned the _aurora borealis_." I let out a sigh. Lily seemed really nice. 

The three of us spoke about the wizarding world in great lengths- well Marlene was speaking and Lily and I were listening in awe. I barely knew more than Lily about this crazy world, my parents had been shielding me from it, probably so I wouldn't feel jealous of the life I'd miss out on.

A few hours later, we were snacking on chocolate frogs and pumpkin pasties from the food trolley, when a young boy with mousy brown hair and a few thin scars running from his temple to the opposite cheek walked into our carriage and sat down with a huff. Marlene and I looked at each other with curiosity before looking back at him.

"Remus Lupin," he said finally, filling the silence that was now present in our previously chatty carriage. "I just introduced Sirius Black and James Potter, worst mistake of my life." 

Remus was a quiet boy, but not necessarily shy. He was easy company and stayed with us for the remainder of the trip to Scotland. Apparently, some people called James and Sirius were being incredibly loud in their shared carriage and he needed to get away from the chaos. A few bangs sounded every now and then from the carriage that Remus had emerged from, followed by laughing which earned a sigh from Remus.

\-----

The rest of the night was a blur. We reached the castle over a trip on boats across a large, dark lake. And yes, Hogwarts was a castle and was possibly the most beautiful place I had ever seen. A great feast awaited us inside the great hall after a sorting ceremony, I was placed in Gryffindor like my father had been and I felt a surge of pride as I strode across the room to where Lily, Marlene, and Remus were sat.

Next to them was the Black boy, Sirius, who was looking a bit green despite having been sorted into the red house. Bellatrix and Narcissa, his cousins in Slytherin, were staring daggers into the back of his head and I wondered if somehow it was causing him physical pain. there were two more boys who I learned were called James Potter, a charming black haired boy with green eyes and large round glasses, and Peter Pettigrew, a small mousy blond boy who seemed to be James's shadow and stuck to him like one.

After dinner, we were led to the Gryffindor common room through a portrait of a singing lady via the use of the password: _novis initiis_. New beginnings. I thought the password was incredibly fitting.

My trunk and schoolbooks were perched on the edge of my bed and Forrest had been relocated to his new home in the Owlery. I was sharing a room with Lily, Marlene, and a girl named Mary MacDonald. We unpacked and I followed the girls into Remus, James, Sirius, and Peter's room to hang out for the rest of the evening. 

The boys were all hilarious, James really knew how to win over a crowd and it was evident that he knew it, too. He was very confident but was somehow not arrogant in the least. Peter would only make small comments to add to whatever James was saying and would bask in the praise James would receive. 

Remus would roll his eyes at any mention of Quidditch, Sirius and James seemed to be obsessed with it. I pretended to agree with him that it was pointless, but I had always had a secret love for the game but never had the opportunity to try it out myself. Sirius was another story, and although he would turn whiter than a ghost whenever family or houses were brought up, he was definitely the shone the brightest of the four boys. He more than matched James's confidence but unlike James, he was a bit arrogant. I did not mind it though too much, because I could get a bit hot-headed and arrogant myself. 

"Guys, if you are going to be talking about what pranks you will be pulling all night, then I'm off to bed," Lily said.

Stood up to leave after James and Sirius had been debating on whether they could smuggle five hundred dung bombs into the Slytherin common room unnoticed. Sirius snorted in annoyance.

"Oh come _on_ Evans, leaving after you've been made an accomplice. You can't be serious!"

I followed suit and stood up too.

"No of course not Black, _you're_ Sirius," I replied with a smirk and the boys toppled over with laughter.

"We should probably go to bed anyways, early start tomorrow," Potter said after catching his breath. James was looking baffled that he hadn't come up with this joke yet but agreed with a laugh.

"I like this one," he said giving me a small smile. "You were right Remus, the girls are pretty cool. And yeah we should probably go to sleep soon too lads."

We bid the boys goodnight and headed back to our room. I climbed tiredly into my four-poster bed and smiled in the darkness. Oh yes, I thought. I will be very happy here indeed.


	3. First Year: Torment and Turning Twelve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aurora gains her first nemesis, and Sirius turns twelve.

The first few months I spent at Hogwarts was a mixture of chaos, laughter, and awe. The classes were both everything and nothing I expected them to be and each day my fascination for the magical world grew more and more. No wonder my parents had shielded me from it because now that I have a taste for it there is no way I could ever give up the magical world. 

Magic came easily to me as if I have always had a knack for it. Even McGonagall was surprised when I transfigured the toad into a lovely bouquet of roses about ten seconds after we had been instructed to do so. No one would have believed I had ever been considered a squib, and I was starting to agree with them. So what if I wasn't making the pots and pans levitate at age four as James had, or 'accidentally' blown up the family owl, as Sirius had done at seven. I had always ignored the magic growing at my fingertips because my parents had told me I was dreaming of it and it must all be in my head. They were the ones who made me a squib, it had nothing to do with me.

Every student was so different, not only in magical ability but as people. I got along with most people I met but had become closer to the Marauders, as the four boys had taken to calling themselves, and Lily. Marlene and Mary were both sweet girls but preferred to spend the time just the two of them. However, my first enemy, no my first _nemesis_ , was Severus Snape.

Though I had never taken a liking to the boy, he was friends with Lily and I had to respect that. Any time she was not with us, she was sure to be around Snape. But whenever Lily had her head turned, he would shoot daggers in my direction. Perhaps it was because I was stealing his friend away, but there seemed to be a loathing that even I did not know the reason for.

After Potions on Halloween, I caught Snape tampering with my potion. After confronting him, he switched the two potions and mine erupted, spewing green foam from the cauldron and drenching him in a mucusy substance. He alerted Slughorn, claiming I had tampered with his potion, and as Snape was the model potions student he was obviously believed. Ten house points were deducted from me and I was given detention, and that sleazy cockroach got away with it.

That night in the common room after detention, James and Sirius were utterly thrilled when they heard what had happened.

"Our Rora has grown up," Sirius mock wept into James's shoulder. "She has outgrown the prank masters."

I gave them an annoyed shove before sitting down on the plushy armchair.

"No, you idiots I have not. _Snivellus_ tampered with my potion and when he was caught he switched them." Sirius grinned at me mischievously.

"Hey. Snivellus. I like that one," he said making a mental note that that was now Snape's nickname.

I felt a pang of dread knowing this is what they would call him for the rest of his school career, but that guilt soon faded as I remembered what Snape had just pulled. What on earth could Snape have against me? And now, it seemed that Snape had just made enemies for life out of the marauders as well. "We'll get him back soon, don't worry," Peter chimed in. I often forgot about the smaller marauder, because of how quiet he could be at times. I gave him a small smile before turning to my Herbology homework.

**\-----**

I was awoken by the sound of a thud coming from downstairs. It was 5:46 am on Wednesday, November third, and it was Sirius's twelfth birthday. I wrapped a blanket around my shoulders and headed down to the common room, where I found Peter rubbing his head, a purple bruise beginning to form. James was trying to hold back laughter as not to wake up the whole of Gryffindor house.

"Why the bloody hell are you lot awake at this ungodly hour?" I hissed at James, then turning to Peter.

"And what happened to you?"

All he could respond with was a groan, so James spoke for him.

"Well you see it's Sirius's birthday and we've got a surprise waiting for him. We need three people to do set it up properly, and Pete tried to go up to your room to ask if you'd help us but... well apparently there is some charm stopping boys from going up. How come you lot can come to ours but we can't yours?"

I rolled my eyes at him.

"I don't know, do I? I didn't design the school. Also, why couldn't you get Remus to do it?"

The boys just shrugged, Remus sometimes just disappeared from the castle and wouldn't tell anyone where he was going. He would return a bit roughed up but always as cheery as the day before.

I groaned and helped them set up the decorations in the common room. A banner that would sing _Happy Birthday_ to you in any language you wanted and Sirius seemed to know a great many languages. Then we set up an array of breakfast delicacies that the boys had stolen from the kitchens, so Sirius would not have the walk to the great hall for breakfast, a task that he moaned about every morning. Lastly, there were fireworks that would go off as soon as Sirius entered the common room, a display of brilliant red and gold that would spell out TWELVE in big, bold letters. even though the common room had a silencing spell so it would not disrupt McGonagall in her office, the next room over, it was not extended to the dormitories, so as soon as Sirius was up, the rest of Gryffindor would be too.

The day was a success according to Sirius, who got a round of _Happy Birthday_ in twelve languages. Remus returned to the common room minutes after the chaos had calmed down and he looked rather pleased that he had missed being woken up with a bang. The rest of the day was uneventful until later that night when we were all seated inside Sirius's four-poster bed. How six people fit in at all was a mystery, but it was a bit of a squish. We ended the night telling jokes and stories, eating the endless chocolate that had been supplied by Remus, and playing a few rounds of exploding snap. 

One by one people started to leave until it was just me and Sirius left on his bed. We were in a heated debate about quidditch teams and hardly noticed everyone else slipping away. Sirius and I were constantly bickering, constantly at each other's throats, that the others had learned not to interfere. We continued to talk for another half-hour and although Sirius Black was an arrogant prick it turned we actually had a lot in common. Our parents both favored our younger brothers, we had both been a cause of great shame to our families just by simply existing. And yet somehow, I had it lucky of the two of us. Sirius spoke about life at home with an air of dread and fear, and though life at home wasn't perfect for me I had never once been afraid of it nor my parents, but it was evident Sirius seemed to be.

"Rora, can I ask you something?" Sirius suddenly whispered.

I gave him an alarmed look. "Yeah of course Black, go ahead."

He drew his breath in sharply before meeting my eyes. "Am I evil?" I looked up at him in surprise and he continued, "I've thought about it and my family most definitely are evil. I mean have you seen how Bellatrix grins widely after tormenting first years? And it's not just that, my mother hurts me when I've disobeyed, and not just harmless hexes either. My father is always going to shady meetings and more often than not returns with blood on his shoes. And yet, everyone tells me I remind them of my parents. Does that mean I'm like them? Do _you_ think I'm like them?"

Sirius was looking down now, fearful of what I would say next. I reached for his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"No Sirius, you are not evil. You're an evil genius, maybe, with that mind of yours, but you're not evil." He gave a sigh of relief and chuckled.

"Thank you," was all he said, and he looked suddenly very small despite always being larger than life. That was another thing we had in common, I noted.

"Good night Black," I said quietly and got off his bed. "Happy birthday."


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aurora discovers Remus's secret and gets in a fight with Sirius

It's not that my family didn't miss me, I don't think, but they requested I stayed at Hogwarts over the December break. Something about them taking Jesse to Switzerland for Christmas. I was a bit offended when I got the owl, especially as I was planning on sending one myself expressing my wishes to stay on at school over break, but now I knew I wasn't wanted at home, I was in a bit of a mood about not returning with my classmates.

"Oh cheer up Rora," Sirius said to me as we watched James and Peter leave the common room to head to the station. "A Black-Lupin-Sinclair Christmas doesn't sound too bad if you ask me."

Remus, Sirius, and I were the only first-years staying behind at Hogwarts and I was eternally grateful that I was at least here stuck with my friends. Sirius did not return home because, and I could hardly blame him for it, he wanted to stay away from his family as much as possible before he _had_ to return in the Summer. As long as there was somewhere else to be other than home, if you could even call it home, Sirius would practically leap at the opportunity. 

Remus also stayed on at Hogwarts but did not seem to have a reason to. In fact, he had been joking that he would miss not have his mother's famous Christmas dinner and that there was no way that Hogwarts could possibly beat it, but it was evident that Remus was clearly upset to be staying. He never gave a straightforward reason as to why he was not returning home and I didn't push it, because if he wasn't comfortable telling me I wasn't going to overstep my boundaries.

Although it would have been fun to have a more stable company, as Sirius and Remus seemed to constantly fill their time trying to cause as much havoc as possible, being with the boys was a lot of fun. The three of us did loads of things together, like using James's invisibility cloak, something I had no idea he even owned until that holiday, exploring the castle. Remus and Sirius were adamant in knowing every nook and cranny the castle had to offer and were mapping it out for a 'project' they were working on. But other times I spent my time with only one of the boys, the other off god-knows-where doing god-knows-what. Sirius and I would spend every morning practicing quidditch- which I was getting rather good at. Later in the day, Remus and I would spend the evenings reading books together on one of the common room's giant sofas, quietly keeping each other company while each in completely different worlds. Sirius would spend his evenings writing to James and Peter, and even his younger brother Regulus, and preferred not to join us. 

Remus and I did this every evening and it was something I rather looked forward to. This was every evening, except the last day of the year, however. Remus disappeared for the night, and though Remus seemed to occasionally do this, I had never really stopped to think why in too much detail.

"Sirius, where did Remus say he was going again?" I asked casually after dinner that evening.

"I don't know. Maybe he went to the hospital wing and wasn't feeling well," he replied tiredly, not taking his attention away from the quidditch magazine he was flipping through.

"Yeah, maybe," I said but I was not convinced.

My brain was asking a million questions at once. Why did Remus disappear, and only for a night at a time? And why was he always so _secretive_ about it? He always returned injured but why did it seem he wasn't too bothered by it? The next morning Remus arrived at breakfast with a fresh cut running from his jaw, down his neck under his cloak, that he seemed to ignore as well as a very hoarse throat, and suddenly it all fell into place.

"Remus, can we talk?" I whispered quietly that night as I put down my book.

"Sure," he replied, rather startled by the sudden seriousness in my voice.

"The thing is," I began calmly, "I noticed at breakfast you wore a bit worse for wear, and more so than you usually are when you disappear. I want you to know you can tell me anything."

He looked at me with a look that was a mixture of relief and fear, as if not quite sure what direction my reaction was to the situation. He gave me a small smile and answered the question I didn't have to ask.

"Yes. I am a werewolf, but don't worry I won't hurt you or anyone." he quickly added.

I told him I knew he would never hurt anyone and that I still regarded him as my friend, that nothing had changed between us.

"Thank you for understanding Aurora, I've been wanting to tell someone but Dumbledore thought it best if we kept a low profile. Being a," he mouthed 'werewolf' even though there was no one else around to hear him say it, "is not exactly accepted by all wizards."

He looked so sad and _so_ tired, and I could only imagine how hard it was for him. He told me about life living with lycanthropy and about the werewolf who turned him, Fenrir Greyback. 

I was glad that Remus opened up to me because from the sounds of it, he had been bottling it up for quite some time. Sirius eventually graced us with his presence, as Remus put it, and we spent the evening drinking butterbeer that Sirius had nicked from the kitchen earlier and planning the marauders next big prank, which seemed to involve levitating the giant squid from the Great Lake.

"You are mental Black if you believe you are powerful enough to lift the giant squid out of the water. It's not the slightly-larger-than-average squid either, it's the _giant_ squid. There is no way a first-year could do that kind of magic let alone _you._ " I said to him after he proposed the idea.

"What do you mean let alone me?" Sirius said defensively and shot me a dirty look. I sighed.

"You may have a bloody brilliant brain when it comes to pulling practical jokes, but I mean come _on_ you never so much as look at your schoolwork. I'd not be surprised if your family pays someone to do your work for you."

This was a joke, but apparently, Sirius did not seem to see it that way. Everyone knew Sirius was a top student and there was no way he would ever ask his family for help, his ego was too big not to succeed by himself.

"Excuse me?! I'm not the one who is a squib that needed to actually be shoved into magic school to show even the _slightest_ bit of magical ability," he said cooly.

That crossed a line and he immediately seemed to realize it. Remus had disappeared, clearly not wanting to get in the middle of yet another Sinclair-Black spat.

"You slimy git, I'll show you what magical ability is." was all I could say as I sent a hex flying at him.

Suddenly Sirius was floating up to the ceiling, unable to get down and screaming curses at me to do so. I did the silencing charm on him and headed up to my room, deciding I would let him down in the morning if he was going to be a prick. I could not believe he would bring up the thing that has made my life a living hell for the past few years, something I had been trying desperately to overcome since being at Hogwarts. I pushed any thoughts of him out of my head as I angrily got into bed, and tried to get some sleep. 

The next morning, I woke up early, in a slightly more forgiving mood, and decided to let Sirius down. By the time I got downstairs, it was apparent that Remus had beat me to it and already let Sirius down himself. Remus was trying to give me a look of disapproval but it was clear he was hiding a smile, and the sleep-deprived boy next to him was grinning widely, which surprised me.

"I did deserve that, and god that was brilliant of you," he said with a laugh.

I stared at him with my mouth slightly agape and shook my head with a chuckle. He constantly finds new ways to astound me, Sirius Goddam Orion Black.


	5. First Year: Summer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last of their first year, and summer 1971.

It is unbelievable to me that I have been at Hogwarts for a year now, it feels like just yesterday I was stepping off into the cool Scotland air for the first time and feeling an immediate sense of belonging. The last few weeks at Hogwarts before the summer were very happy indeed. My first exams went by with a breeze, as I had been doing a lot of extra reading throughout the year and it meant that I was not too stressed with studying like my peers were. James and Remus were doing excessive amounts of studying, even though they were both well prepared, Peter was scrambling to catch up on his missing assignment and therefore ended up staying up late every night cramming his work, and Sirius hardly studied at all. 

It astounded me how Sirius got Outsandings in most subjects and got an Exceeding Expectations in Charms and an Acceptable in Herbology. I got Outstandings in every subject except for History of Magic where I got an Exceeding Expectations and I was ecstatic. I received a very complimentary owl from my parents when they heard the results and I beamed with pride, having been a squib seemed to be slowly being forgotten by my parents and I breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

"I don't know how you do it Black," Peter said rubbing his temples, after getting mostly Acceptables.

"You hardly studied at all."

Lily gave a small smile, clearly trying to hide the smile she had plastered on her face ever since receiving Outstandings in every subject. Lily was by far the smartest Witch I knew by a long shot, but unlike Sirius, she was humble about her achievements.

"It's not my fault I am perfect." Sirius yawned as he lazily threw his clothes in his trunk, clearly upset at the notion of returning home.

We were all sat around the boy's bed while he was packing, after he had been procrastinating doing so for the last few days. I rolled my eyes at his arrogance.

"You're hardly perfect Black, I beat you in Charms and Herbology," I said smugly, reaching for a chocolate frog from the bag that Peter had supplied. 

At first, I had been skeptical of Peter but over the last few months he had turned out to be a lot of fun. Though he wasn't as charming a Sirius or James, nor did he have Remus's brilliant mind, Peter always seemed to know what to say or do to cheer you up. Especially now we were all sad about spending the summer apart.

"Thanks for these, Pete," I said as I stuffed the chocolate frog in my mouth.

He gave me a small smile and reached for one himself. Remus had been fretting about the two full moons he would be spending away from Hogwarts because apparently, the transition was becoming more and more agonizing each time. The other marauders had discovered Remus's condition after the January full moon when Remus had stayed in the hospital wing two days longer than usual. James was the one who mentioned it was unfortunate that Remus had missed the full moon because there was due to be an eclipse, and he and Sirius seemed to come to the realization at once why, after months of skepticizing, Remus would disappear and return injured. Peter needed a bit of prompting after the other two boys' jaws had dropped to the floor, but eventually got there. The boys had been incredibly supportive of Remus but were offended when they found out I knew before they had. Sirius more so than the rest.

"She isn't even a marauder," Sirius sulked. I gave him an annoyed look.

"I don't want to be in your stupid gang anyways, your only reputation is getting in trouble and I actually want to be respected at this school. I am Remus's friend and it's not my fault the rest of you were too blind to spot it before I did. I mean you share a _room_ with him and were hardly concerned that he returned every month battered and bruised. We're not all that heartless, you know."

Sirius was about to speak up but stopped when he caught Remus's eye, there was no point in getting in yet another fight, especially because he knew I was right.

**\-----**

That summer I spent a week at James's house, visited Lily a few times, and spent the rest of the time at home playing quidditch with Jesse. My parents were skeptical when I said James had invited me over, but when I mentioned he was a Potter, they seemed to accept at once. Our parents knew each other a few years ago when our fathers worked together and were delighted that their children were now friends.

I got a lot of quidditch practice in over the summer after spending most of it with boys, and I decided I would try out for Chaser the next time there was an available slot on the Gryffindor team. Sirius was an excellent Keeper and James was a brilliant Chaser too. Remus, though having no particular interest in the sport, would be the beater, and Peter would be the seeker even though he wasn't very good at it. Occasionally my family would come over for dinner throughout the week and Jesse would be an additional beater in our games. 

The rest of the summer, I studied History of Magic to improve my mark the following year, as well as exploring more of the wizarding world. I had only been to Diagon Alley once before, as exposure to the wizarding world would bring both my parents and myself grief. I met up with Lily and we bought all our school supplies. I bought myself a new broom, and we wandered around all the wacky shops. 

"So, what do you think of James?" I asked slyly, as Lily and I were window shopping.

She rolled her eyes because for the last few months James had developed quite an infatuation for the red-haired girl.

"As I've told you many times Rora, James is a great guy, but I'm just not interested."

James and Lily were so polar opposite that I wondered if they could ever work out, but seeing as James had been persistent after about five rejections so far, I think it's safe to say he really did like her. We talked about boys for a bit and decided they were all useless and would wait until our fourth year before even considering going out with anyone.

Lily and I were both upset when we had to part ways, it was like this every time we did so. She was my best friend and although I loved Jesse with all my heart, we were just so different. And although Lily had a sister, things were no better for her, as she seemed to despise Lily.

"Luckily I have Sev for the rest of the summer to hang out with," Lily said as we were saying our goodbyes.

God, I hated Severus and Lily knew this, but I would not push my distate onto her. Because, after all, we were allowed to have other friends. I waved as I stepped into the fireplace to use the floo network to return home. Only one more week before I would be back at Hogwarts, and I was counting down the seconds.

That night, I wrote a letter to Sirius. None of us had heard from him since he left James's house, and apparently, his parents were furious with him. Sirius had mentioned he was staying at a Pureblood's house for a week but neglected to mention it was James's, and the silence that followed his departure was excruciating.

_Dear Sirius,_

_Where the bloody hell have you been?! I hope you haven't been killed yet, because Hogwarts will be ten times more boring without you. Seriously (Siriusly) though, I hope you are alright and I can't wait to see you lot in a week. It's been an uneventful summer without the marauders. I know you probably can't write back because of your delightful mother, but if there is any way you can let me know you got this, that'd be grand._

_Yours, Aurora_

I considered writing "Love, Aurora" but that felt a bit strange. I tied the letter to Forrest's leg and let him fly off to deliver it. I really worried about Sirius, although I didn't tell him that because his ego would inflate masses amounts if he knew. The next afternoon I was busy packing my things for school when a large owl tapped on my window and I untied the note attached to its leg.

_Sirius is okay, he says he can't wait to see you guys. Please address any future letters to me and I'll pass them on to him. Our parents trust me more._

_-Regulus Arcturus Black_

I gave a sigh of relief because it was okay. Sirius was okay.


	6. Second Year: Dumbledore's Office

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aurora learns a secret.

I cannot believe it. This is not how I had imagined my third night back at Hogwarts to go. I am sitting in Dumbledore's office, which I'm trying not to be too fascinated by, because this is clearly not the time to be staring at the many magical masterpieces that fill the circular room. I wanted to ask so desperately about the firey phoenix perched on top of a tall wooden stand, I wanted to ask about the sorting hat which had its own tower, as I hadn't regarded the hat much since the day I had it perched atop of my head, and I wanted to ask about the rows of portraits of prior headmasters lined up on the walls. I could ask none of these things because the headmaster and was staring at me, and I was not sure if he had blinked since I sat down in the chair opposite his desk.

"Miss Sinclair," Dumbledore spoke after about five minutes of silence, "Why don't you tell me what happened this morning."

I sighed quietly and started the story. That morning I awoke in an irritable mood. I had gotten little sleep from the night before after swapping stories about my summer with my three roommates, and was restless the rest of the night because the heat of summer had not quite died down yet. At breakfast, Remus and Peter had gotten into an argument, which was surprising because Sirius was usually the one to pick a fight.

"No Remus you don't understand that's not what I meant," Peter pleaded with the other boys.

"No, I understand you _perfectly_ Pete. You believe I am putting other students in danger by being at Hogwarts." He replied. He may not be in his wolf form, but it was obvious his hackles were raised.

"That is not what I meant. I just said the whomping willow can be quite dangerous, especially when students don't realize it has only been put there for their own safety and they must avoid it."

"Yeah, their safety from _me_ is what you're saying though, isn't it."

Peter rubbed his temples. "That is not-"

"Oh for Merlin's sake you two. Cut. It. Out." I had had enough of the boys' bickering and desperately was in need of a cup of coffee.

Sirius thought I was being pretentious now that I started drinking black coffee at the ripe age of twelve, but in reality, it is one of the only things that get me through mornings like these. Especially when my first class was potions. Fantastic.

I was greeted with a glare from Snape as I entered the class, which I promptly ignored and took my seat next to Lily who gave me a small smile.

"Alright, Sinclair?" She asked, green eyes gleaming in the light.

"Alright, Evans?" I replied with a nod.

We often didn't speak much in the mornings, I am not generally a morning person on the best of days but especially not today. Class began, and Slughorn started explaining what our next essay would be about when suddenly I felt my forehead begin to itch and tingle. It was quite unlike anything I had ever felt and I started to rud my head, feeling small bumps forming. Lily turned to me and with a yelp of surprise, her hand shot up to alert Slughorn. 

"Severus, did _you_ do this?" Lily said as the teacher came over and the black-haired boy laughed. I was still not sure what was happening, but I knew it couldn't be good.

"The Furnunculus charm?" was all the potions teacher could say when he saw my condition. He turned and gave a disappointed look to Snape. Oh no. The Pimple Jinx. I got up and ran out of the class to the nearest bathroom, ignoring the calls from Lily for me to remain calm.

When I reached it I looked in the mirror and nearly fell over from shock. It was worse than I could have imagined. the word SQUIB was written in large capital letters on my pale forehead out of bright red pimples. I turned on my heel and stormed right back into the classroom.

"I think it suits yo-" Snape was cut off as I punched him square in the nose.

James, Remus, and Sirius cheered, Peter turned white, Lily was on the verge of tears, and Slughorn just stood there not knowing quite what to do. Ultimately, house points were deducted, detention was given to both of us, and Snape was sent to Madam Pomfrey to fix his now broken nose, which had thick red blood dripping from it. I was so filled up with rage that I could hardly contain myself, I would have killed if I could.

People avoided me for the rest of the day, partly because of the bright red markings on my face, and partly because of the fury in my eyes. There was nothing that could be done to cure this Jinx, but I was told that it should wear off in about a week because Snape had not made it permanent. I had a mean scowl plastered to my face for the remainder of the day and if anyone so much as glanced at my forehead I would practically jump them. After my third attack of the day, I was pulled out of classes and was scolded by McGonagall for my behavior. Later in the evening, after I thought I had dealt with all the reprimands I would get for the school year, I was called into Dumbledore's office.

**\-----**

"Why do you think it bothered you so much Aurora?" Dumbledore asked after my retelling of the incident.

I shrugged.

"I don't know, maybe I don't like being called a squib!" I snapped back, too tired to care for my tone.

Dumbledore raised his eyebrows at me but his tone of voice never wavered. "I know it isn't a nice thing to be called, but it seriously affected your behavior today. I have never seen you so much as hurt a fly, and I know you wish no harm on others. This was very much against your usual character. So I will ask again. Why do you think it bothered you so much?"

It took everything in me not to burst into tears in front of him. I had tried so hard not to let it affect me, I had tried so hard to prove them all wrong, but I knew that no matter what I did nor said would ever change how I was viewed.

"Headmaster, you know I was considered a squib. I believed it to be so too, so I never attempted magic and would ignore it if I ever felt it. I pretended for years I didn't mind because I never _really_ did all that much. But after I got here, to Hogwarts, I realized just how much I had missed out on. And, well, I know this will sound crazy but I've been thinking my parents tried to _turn_ me into a squib." my voice was shaky and on the edge of breaking.

"They have told me ever since I was really small I was one, and who was I to do anything but believe them? And so today, when I had all those eyes look up at this," I gestured angrily at my spots, "those built-up feelings just couldn't take it anymore. Why would my parents subject me to a life like this one by _choice_ headmaster?! Why would they choose not to at least _try_ to see I wasn't a squib?!"

Dumbledore had not once tried to interrupt me and looked at me with earnest eyes. I needed to catch my breath after talking for so long so the room was silent. 

"Aurora, your parents have always known you are not a squib."

I looked up. That was not what I had expected him to say.

"I cannot tell you yet why they did it, why they pretended you were one, but it was all for your own safety. I actually asked them to do it, and they made an unbreakable vow they would never be the ones to tell you why, it was just too risky. But one day I will tell you myself, however, that day cannot be today. I promise it will be soon, and all will be revealed."

I stared at the headmaster in shock. Why was he being so secretive, and how could it be so severe that _he_ had to be involved in it all? And what right did _anyone_ have to make me feel worthless for years? My mouth had fallen open and my brow was knotted in a mixture of surprise and fury, though I wasn't quite sure which emotion was winning at this point.

"I promise, it is to protect you Aurora," Dumbledore said and walked me to the door, but I still had not said a word. "Goodnight Miss Sinclair."

**\-----**

I walked straight through the common room and up to my bed, ignoring the questions that James, Remus, Peter, and Sirius were calling out to me as I stormed silently past them. I climbed into bed and started to silently sob. There better be a bloody good reason for all this, I thought as I climbed into bed. A bloody good reason indeed.


	7. Second Year: Night Flying

I chose not to tell Lily my news, though she is my best friend. I chose not to tell anyone. I had contemplated telling Remus, as he told me of his lycanthropy but what good would that do? There was not much of a point to say to him "By the way, my parents raised me as a squib knowing full well I wasn't, for some arbitrary reason I do not know, and that they cannot tell me. Oh and Dumbledore is somehow involved, for a reason, I also do not know." This was because I knew it wouldn't be as big a big deal to anyone as it was to me. I decided I would just forget about it because clearly, I wouldn't get answers anytime soon.

It was easy to distract myself because this year I could officially try out for the quidditch team, and luckily there were two spots for chasers up for grabs. James and I were absolutely ecstatic, jumping with nerves the morning of tryouts. 

"Hurry up Potter." I eagerly called out to the boy who was trying to perfect his hair in the mirror. "Oh give it a rest will you, you're trying to get it messy when you know the wind will do that just fine." 

"And I thought James was mental when it came to getting up early for quidditch. Tryouts don't start for another twenty minutes." Sirius groaned from his side of the room. I had been in the boys' dorm room fr the last half hour talking strategies with James.

"I don't care, he will probably spend another fifteen minutes trying to look good for Lily if I don't hurry him along."

"I do _not_ fancy Evans," James called out which led to everyone in the room giving an unconvinced groan.

"Sure you don't, Mr.James Lily-you-are-so-clever-and-so-pretty-wont-you-marry-me-please Potter."

James just blushed and continued messing with his hair. He had been swooning over Lily for the past few weeks, and yet refused to admit to anyone his feelings for her.

Tryouts went incredibly, James and I were both chosen for the team which earned us scowls from the older students. That night we were all celebrating with a feast Peter had organized from the kitchens. How Peter constantly upped his game every feast, I do not know, and this was far grander than I think was deserved for the occasion. Lily, Marlene, Mary, the Marauders, and I spent the evening eating and laughing and speaking for ages.

"Alright guys, what shall we do tonight?" Remus said with his mouth full of a chocolate frog. 

"I was thinking," Sirius started, "that since our lovely Ms. Sinclair has recently been appointed to the team, and has never been the initiator of a wild Marauder adventure that she decides. But it has to be Marauder-worthy, we don't want to ruin our reputation." 

An idea popped into my head. "We've always explored the inside of Hogwarts, I think it's a fine time to explore the outside."

"If you're thinking what I'm thinking you're thinking, then I'm bloody _in_." 

Sirius and I were grinning at each other while the other three gave us rather perplexed looks. 

"Come on boys, who's up for flying."

\-----

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Peter was squeaking as we crept across the large field towards the broom shed. I swear that boy was like a mouse sometimes.

"Oh stop whinging Pete it's _fine_ and it'll be fun," Remus answered. I would always laugh whenever anyone said how Remus was the one who was led astray by the other three, but if anything Remus was the most brilliant and mischievous of all. He never got the blame, when more often than not it was him who had suggested whatever prank they had done.

All five of us were huddled under the invisibility cloak, and I was glad Lily had decided to stay and do some extra reading for Herbology because it was already an unbearable squish. We reached the shed and James hid the cloak in a nearby bush.

"Alohamora," I whispered and the lock of the shed clicked open.

I stepped into the small space and passed each boy a broom. We had decided not to use our own in case we had to flee the scene and abandon them somewhere.

We started flying. First along the edge of the forbidden forest. Then, around the Astronomy Tower. Above and in between the many rooves that Hogwarts offered. We then made our way past Gryffindor's common room window, Lily was sitting in the comfy window seat and gave us a wave and a cheeky grin as we sped past her. An hour passed and Peter and Remus decided that after a very near catch from McGonagall, they would head back down, especially as neither were particularly skilled at flying with ease. After another hour and a half, James decided he would head back too, probably so Lily would think he was level-headed and would think well of him.

Sirius and I were both rather sore losers, and so when a race began across the vast and endless Great Lake neither of us would back down. The moonlight was reflecting off us as we flew neck-and-neck above the black water. As I gained speed from Sirius, I looked back with a smirk at him cockily. When I faced the front once again, I realized I had been leaning too far forward and did not have enough time to stop the broom from colliding into the icy water.

I resurfaced and coughed out water. Sirius was hovering in the air and laughing like a maniac.

"Get a bit carried away there Rora," he called from above me. I couldn't see where my broom was in the darkness and I was extremely thankful I had not used my own.

"Shut up and pull me up, Black."

"Is that any way to speak to the man who will save you?"

I rolled my eyes with a chuckle.

"Oh please, Sirius _darling,_ will you pull me up?"

He lowered himself down, so that his broom was flying just above the water, but then started flying a small circle around me.

"Stop that you git,"

"Make me."

I did. Using my leg muscles I leaped out of the water at him, grabbed him, and pulled him off the broom into the water as well.

"Hey! That was uncalled for!"

We both laughed as he jumped on me, pushing me under in retaliation. We continued to wrestle playfully in the water until it became too cold for either of us to bear. Sirius and I clambered, with rather a lot of difficulty as we were rather water logged, back onto his broom and flew back to the castle. The sky was slowly becoming lighter and the sun had just begun to rise when we climbed through the portrait into the common room.

James and Lily were both sitting on one of the sofas, waiting for our return. James had drifted off, but Lily was sitting up, very alert.

"Where have you two been?" Lily interrogated. "We thought you had been caught!"

"How low do you think of us Evans!" Sirius answered, squeezing water out of his long, dark hair.

"What in Merlin's name happened to you?!" James said rather startled, after waking up.

Sirius and I looked at each other and burst out into a fit of giggles, not bothering to answer the bespectacled boy.

I hugged Sirius goodnight, which was rather nice despite us being both soaked, and headed up to the showers thankful it was the weekend. I smiled and turned on the hot water, and made a promise to myself to go night flying again.


End file.
